News

— An Alabama sheriff says he believes an Atlanta-based rapper and a music promoter were slain outside of the county where their bodies were found. Authorities are still searching for the men’s vehicle, a 2016 white Honda CRV. The bodies of rapper Edward Reeves, known and Kendrick Stokes were found 3 to 4 miles apart in a rural area of Macon County. Macon County Sheriff Andre Brunson said he believes both bodies were placed in Macon County after the 2 men were killed elsewhere. He didn’t elaborate on evidence in the case, but vowed that authorities are “going to do everything they can to bring justice.” reports are that both men were originally from Montgomery, and were longtime friends.

— An Alabama man escaped custody for the second time in less than one month Sunday around 2:30. Vernon had previously escaped Oct. 29th by forcibly removing his restraints while being booked into the county jail. He was recaptured the next day. Wilson says Vernon is to be considered armed and dangerous. He was last seen in a wooded area of Elmore County, close to the Coosa County line. Wilson says authorities believe Vernon stole an electric dirt bike in Elmore County. Vernon was being held on multiple felony charges, including burglary & auto theft.

Gus Malzahn was named a semifinalist for the George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year award, the Maxwell Football Club announced Thursday. Malzahn is one of 16 coaches to make the cut for the honor, which has been given annually since 1989. Voting for the 16 semifinalists begins today and runs through Dec. 11th, when three finalists will be announced. The winner will be named Dec. 26th.

Auburn Athletics will honor Hall of Fame basketball player Charles Barkley on Iron Bowl weekend with a Charles Barkley Appreciation night at the Friday night men’s basketball game vs. Winthrop followed by a statue unveiling ceremony Saturday at 11 a.m. in front of the Scholarship Entrance of Auburn Arena. The ceremony is free and open to the public. Barkley will also take part in Tiger Walk, beginning at 12:30 The final version of the statue will not be completed until spring, but the ceremony will feature a full-size replica until the permanent statue can be placed.

Auburn police located the body of a missing 67-year-old man in a culvert in the 3200 block of Lee Road 10 yesterday. The body of Auburn resident Charlie Lee Macon was found by authorities after family members of Macon called yesterday morning to report that they had found him. Macon, who had been missing since Monday, was pronounced dead at the scene, Mr. Macon appeared to have fallen approximately 8 to 9 feet to the concrete below the roadway. Macon often walked along the highways picking up cans, according to his family. His body was found in the culvert after family members spotted some bags with cans on the side of the roadway. No foul play is suspected at this time. Auburn Police and the Lee County Coroner’s Office are continuing to investigate the case.

A Lee County judge ruled that enough evidence exists to move forward in a case charging two former Tiger Transit employees with sexually assaulting a female passenger. Judge Steven Speakman made the decision after a preliminary hearing yesterday morning at the Lee County Justice Center, sending the case to a grand jury. Testimony during the hearing described some of the details of what happened the night an 18-year-old Auburn University student was assaulted. The details are lengthy and can be read on our news partners OA Now website at oanow dot com. Tony Martin Patillo, 51, of Columbus, Ga., and James Don Johnson Jr., 32, of Auburn, each faces charges of first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy in the Sept. 15 incident. Both men appeared in court Wednesday with their attorneys.

The peculiar scent or taste in Opelika’s water– is safe to drink, according to Opelika Utilities officials, and will return to normal within a few days once the current supply works its way out of the city’s distribution system. The scent and taste is due to algae in Saugahatchee Lake, which has grown more than usual due to the large amount of rainfall this year. With the change in the water temperature, this algae has started to die off, and it gives water an odd taste and odor. The taste and smell have been detectable for approximately 10 days, said Dan Hilyer, general manager of Opelika Utilities. Hilyer said once new water begins to flow into the system, it’ll then take two or three days to turn the water over. Until then, the water is “perfectly safe to drink,” Hilyer also said, and “There are no health concerns.”

The latest CFP rankings have Alabama replacing Georgia as the No. 1 team in the College Football Playoff rankings after escaping w/a win over Mississippi St. and Ga’s 23-point loss to Auburn. Clemson is 2nd, with Miami & Oklahoma 3rd & 4th. Wisconsin was fifth, Auburn climbed to sixth. Georgia dropped to seventh, and Notre Dame slipped from third to eighth following its blowout loss to the Hurricanes.

Running for the most yards against a top 10 rush defense this season earned Kerryon Johnson the SEC offensive player of the week for his 167 rushing yards and two catches for 66 yards with a touchdown in Auburn’s 40-17 win over Georgia. Johnson snapped Georgia’s nation-best streak of 12 games without allowing a 100-yard rusher, had the most rushing yards by an Auburn player in the series since Kenny Irons had 179 yards in 2005 and topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season. Coach Gus Malzahn says Johnson should absolutely be in the Heisman conversation.

Jacobs announced on Twitter last night that The University plans to broadcast the Iron Bowl on the arena’s scoreboard for fans who don’t have tickets to the game. Auburn did the same thing for fans in 2013. That game did decide, like this year’s will decide the SEC West. No details on ticket pricing have been released yet. Auburn Arena has a capacity of just over 9,000.